The sixth-annual BMW Charity Pro-Am at The Cliffs golf tournament raised $675,865 (a record to date on the 2006 Nationwide Tour) for 29 Upstate and Western North Carolina charities. Checks were presented to representatives from each of the participating charities by officials from South Carolina Charities, Inc., at an event today held in the BMW Zentrum Museum on the grounds of BMW Manufacturing Co.

The BMW Charity Pro-Am at The Cliffs has raised more than $3.7 million for Upstate South Carolina and Western North Carolina charities in six years. The tournament is the leading charity event on the Nationwide Tour.

Thirty-three thousand (33,000) fans witnessed professional Ken Duke win the sixth-annual BMW Charity Pro-Am at The Cliffs golf tournament. The win was the first of Duke’s career, although the Hope, Arkansas-native has recorded two second-place finishes on the Nationwide Tour (2003 Chitimacha Louisiana Open; 2005 Canadian PGA Championship). Duke, a 1992 graduate of Henderson State (Ark.) University, finished the tournament at –13 under par (69, 68, 68, 68) beating Jess Daley by one stroke.

The win earned Duke $112,500, skyrocketing him up the Nationwide Tour money list from 20th place to fifth place. Duke has earned a total of $152,040 so far this year and is well on his way to competing on the PGA TOUR next year. The top 20 money leaders on the Nationwide Tour automatically earn playing status on the PGA TOUR in 2007. The past five winners of the BMW Charity Pro-Am at The Cliffs have gone on to compete on the PGA TOUR. Duke was in the second to last group to tee off on Sunday. He had to wait 15 minutes with his wife, Michelle, and two young daughters, Ashleigh and Lauren, for Daley to finish before being crowned champion.

Brook Cely of BMW Manufacturing Co. in Spartanburg and his professional partner Steve Collins won the Pro-Am portion of the tournament at –38 under par. Country music singer Pat Green and his professional partner Matt Weibring were the best finishing pro-celebrity team at –30 under par.

Other special events that took place as part of the BMW Charity Pro-Am at The Cliffs were also successful, including the Celebrity Walk of Fame held in downtown Greenville, Kevin Costner’s public debut of his band, and the Hootie & The Blowfish concert with Pat Green at the Bi-Lo Center.

The BMW Charity Pro-Am at The Cliffs is the only tournament on the Nationwide Tour where amateurs and celebrities are grouped with Nationwide Tour professionals in a three-day better-ball competition. Amateurs, celebrities and pros rotate between each of the three courses on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, with the 14 lowest scoring pro-amateur/pro-celebrity teams advancing to play Sunday’s final round at The Cliffs Valley course. Celebrities play once at each course on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. The professional winner of the overall 72-hole event earns $112,500 from the total purse of $625,000, which is one of the largest purses on the Nationwide Tour. Amateurs and celebrities compete for individual prizes and cash donations to the charity of their choice out of the beneficiaries selected by South Carolina Charities, Inc.